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Newegg must've gotten a bad batch
04/09/2014

Pros: This board has been running 24/7 in a mid- to high-end machine since December, and it's not stepped one foot wrong for me. It just works exactly as it should. The only issue I had with it was incredibly small: The BIOS version it shipped with wasn't compatible with XMP profiles for memory configuration. However, a simple BIOS update and the problem was resolved. Honestly, this motherboard has been entirely trouble-free for me. I picked this board because I'm still dependent on PCI slots for some components, and this was the best board I could find with two in usable positions (I say two because this board's third PCI slot will be covered up by a dual-slot graphics card). But it's a very solid board for me with a full-featured BIOS. I've paired it with a 4770k and even got some good overclocking out of it. If overclocking is one of your goals, I would look at the Z87-A instead, as it's better equipped for the task. But, if you absolutely need those PCI slots, this is the board to get.

Cons: I suppose I'll count the XMP issue as a con, even though it's an extremely minor one. The BIOS that shipped with it wasn't compatible with XMP profiles for memory configuration, but a simple BIOS update fixed that.

Other Thoughts: I bought this from a local retailer instead of Newegg, but I've had none of the issues anyone here has described with the board. I suspect Newegg simply got a bad batch from Asus, which is unfair, because that reflects poorly on this model, which as far as I can tell, is perfectly fine. I'm hoping more people who need this board are willing to give it a shot, because I've had nothing but a good experience with this board. I use it for photo/video/audio work mostly, and gaming on the side, and this board has left me in no way dissatisfied.

Best performance for the price
01/25/2014

Pros: I've exercised this card with a good number of games so far. And the first thing I do when firing up new games is going into the settings and maxing everything out, assuming this card can do it. And you know what? It can. I only have a 60Hz monitor, so I can't speak for any framerates above that, but every single game I've thrown at it, including AC4 and other very new games, constantly well above 60Hz. Nothing phases it. GPU Boost 2.0 works brilliantly, so long as your case has good airflow and you can actually keep this thing cool. Which isn't hard, the fans on this thing are enormous, powerful, and very quiet. Under full load with the fans on full blast, they are somewhat audible at a couple feet away, but it's not an irritating noise. It's a whooshing kind of hum sound. Very easy to forget the noise is happening. Put on headphones, can't hear a thing.

Cons: The price is still a bit steep. i bought this over the holidays when it was bundled with Batman, Assassin's Creed, and Splinter Cell. I don't have any interest in those games, so I much would've rather just had a lower price instead of three free games I'm not going to play. But, that being said, this is just at about the height of price to performance before you start seeing diminishing returns really take hold. The 780 and 780TI are better cards, obviously, but the price jump is way too high.

Other Thoughts: Save your money and get the 2GB version, unless you intend on playing across multiple monitors. Single-monitor gaming just doesn't need that much memory, and won't for years. The games that recommend any higher are doing so regarding multi-monitor gaming. 4K isn't going to be mainstream for a long time, and it won't be decent until even longer. This card will be relevant for at least three or fours years. So, regarding cost, I see that as a good investment, considering the more expensive cards will age just as quickly despite much higher pricetags.

Best RAM for the money
12/05/2013

Pros: First, let's look at the specs. 1866mHz, which is basically the best performance for the dollar. It's higher bandwidth than 1600, but not much more money. 2133 is higher bandwidth than this, but costs much more money. 2400 is where you start seeing diminishing returns. So, 1866mHz is the sweet spot, it seems. This also has a CAS latency of 9, as opposed to the 10's you see from most other DIMMs at this speed and price. So the improved latency is a nice touch. But the frequency and the latency both come at only 1.5v. All else being said, the relatively low voltage makes this RAM a terrific buy. Most other DIMMs like this run at 1.65v. High specs and low voltage go to make great RAM.

Once delivered, I slid this RAM straight into my new motherboard (ASUS Z87-C) for testing (MemTest86+ DOS). Initially the motherboard reported 1333mHz speeds. I had to update my motherboard's BIOS to enable XMP features. Once that was does, XMP immediately set the RAM to the advertised timings and it works completely stable. MemTest also reported no issues at all.

I have a Hyper 212 EVO on my CPU, and the fan does protrude over the DIMM nearest the CPU a little bit. Luckily, the heatspreader is just barely short enough to not cause any interference. Literally a millimeter between the fan and the top of the heatspreader. It's close, but a millimeter is enough. You'd certainly need to remove the fan to install or change the DIMM, though.

This RAM also sports a lifetime warranty, just like Corsair, Kingston, G.Skill competitors. Really, it's hard to find any fault with this product or company.

Cons: None that I can figure, or at least matter to me. The color of the heatspreader is more of a gold-orange color than the yellow the photo shows. So, if that matters to you, maybe that makes a difference. But I couldn't care less what my RAM looks like, so long as it works as advertised. And this does.

Other Thoughts: Over the holidays, buying two individual sticks was cheaper than buying the 2x8GB pack of the same RAM. That was kind of handy, actually, because typically if you buy a pair of sticks together and one needs to be RMA'd, you need to send both in, even the working one. Since I bought these separately, I wouldn't have had to deal with that should I have received a DOA stick. However, both sticks performed perfectly straight out of the box and I didn't have to deal with the process anyway.